Category 3 prohibition takes effect in SE Fire Centre Thursday

Residents within the Southeast Fire Centre will have to put out any category three fires by 1PM Thursday afternoon.

Karlie Shaughnessy with the B-C Wildfire Service says a prohibition on all category three blazes is being put in place to prevent human-caused wildfires.

“Specifically, the prohibited activities will include the burning of any material, piled or unpiled, larger than two metres high or three metres wide.” explains Shaughnessy. “Stubble or grass fires over an area larger than 2000 square metres, and the burning of more than two piles of any size.”

Shaughnessy explains it’s hard to tell what the summer holds in terms of potential wildfires.

“It’s really hard to predict how many wildfires we’re going to see this season.” says Shaughnessy. “It really depends on how much precipitation we see in June and into July and even in August.”

All of the East Kootenay will fall under the prohibition.

Just last year fines for failing to abide by the ban tripled.

For the latest updates on wildfire activity and fire restrictions visit the BC Wildfire Service website.